


Let me Help (rhymes with "I love you")

by Sword_Kallya



Category: DCU (Comics)
Genre: (Literal) Alien Courting Customs, Arranged Marriage, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Krypton Survives, Krypton!AU, Kryptonian Culture & Customs, Kryptonian Language, Kryptonians invaded Earth, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-02
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-14 17:07:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,548
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29795133
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sword_Kallya/pseuds/Sword_Kallya
Summary: “Let me help.” Rhymes with “I love you,” right?”-Lois McMaster Bujold, BarrayarIn an attempt to end the fighting for the conquest of Earth, General Dru-Zod offers a marriage between Kal-El, new governor of Earth and one of the Resistance’s (formerly known as the Justice League)’s three Generals.Bruce Wayne, the Batman, volunteers as the only general who doesn’t hold a position in one of Earth’s remaining governments. He expects at best one of Zod’s dimwitted lackeys, and at worst someone who lost a loved one in the fighting and now holds a grudge.Kal-El, son of the most vocal voice for peace on the Kryptonian Council, expects at best a cowed enemy that despises him quietly, and at worst someone who will actively try to kill him.Neither of them gets what they expected.
Relationships: Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne
Comments: 10
Kudos: 101





	Let me Help (rhymes with "I love you")

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Worldbuilding notes relevant to this chapter:  
> \- Female Kryptonian names are now [name]-[family] instead of [name] [father’s name]-[family]  
> \- Because Superman was (obviously) unavailable, the Justice League was founded by Batman, Wonder Woman, and Aquaman

Diana caught Bruce’s arm. “I can’t let you do this.”

He met her gaze squarely. “Name me one other person with the authority and freedom to do it.”

Diana set her jaw. “Arthur and I have the authority–”

“You’re a princess. Arthur is a king. Governmental changes, especially at this point, are a risk we can’t afford. I’ve already arranged for all my civilian responsibilities to be taken care of. Besides, Arthur is married with a child, and Mera would murder us both for suggesting it.”

“Bruce, you–” Diana snapped her mouth shut. She gestured sharply, and Hal led the Kryptonian messenger, a delicate young blonde, out of the room. As soon as the door closed, she whirled on Bruce. “You have _children._ You can’t just leave them!”

“I’ve already arranged for them to be taken care of if something happens to me. I’m doing this _for_ them,” Bruce snapped. “If we don’t accept this offer, the fighting will reach Gotham within the week. I won’t be able to keep them safe with Kryptonians in our streets, and Damian is _ten._ I can’t–” Bruce cut himself off and slumped, just barely. “I imagine him going up against a Kryptonian and. I can’t. I can’t let that happen.” A year ago, Bruce would never have admitted that to the Amazon. A year ago, Diana hadn’t held him down through screaming hallucinations, courtesy of a Kryptonian bioweapon, and respected him just the same afterwards. Diana was one of the few people Bruce trusted with knowledge of his family.

Diana had met Damian. She knew how willing he was, more than any of Bruce’s other children, to attack anything he thought posed a threat. And she also knew intimately how useless all his training would be against a single Kryptonian.

“We can find someone else,” Diana insisted. “Or we can stall, they might backpedal if we push hard enough–”

“They won’t. You know they won’t. Krypton doesn’t negotiate. They deliver ultimatums.” Bruce made a sound that on anyone else would be a sigh. “I don’t like this any more than you do, Diana, but it’s our best chance at not being totally obliterated.”

Diana buried her face in her hands. “Fine. Fine. I’ll stand by you on this, but Bruce…” It was always a gamble, trying to reassure Batman with touch, but Diana reached out anyway, resting a hand on his armored shoulder. She didn’t squeeze – the titanium was enough to hurt even her fingers – but she hoped the pressure helped. For once he didn’t shake her off. “I’m worried about what will happen to _you.”_

Beneath her hand, his shoulder trembled.

“We can’t afford to refuse them.” Bruce sounded like he was trying to convince himself as much as her. “One of us has to go. I’m the best choice.”

He was right. He often was, Diana had found in her years fighting alongside this strangest of men. But that didn’t mean that what Krypton was asking wasn’t cruel, or that half of Bruce’s insistence wasn’t because he was determined to fall on this sword for them. She might have to admit he was right, but that didn’t mean Diana couldn’t try to help. “It won’t be forever.”

Bruce shot her a sharp glance. “If we break a treaty, they’ll roll right over us.”

“Are you so averse to faking your death?”

Bruce’s startled huff of amusement felt like as great a victory as their discovery of kryptonite.

“We’ll wait a year, maybe two – as many as five if you think it necessary. Then we stage an attack, and you’ll ‘die’ in the fighting. Humans are so much more delicate than Kryptonians or Amazons.” Diana shrugged casually, as if the fact were no great matter. “And then we smuggle you to Themiscyra, and your children can visit whenever they like. Mother will allow it, after all your family has done for us.”

With every word, the subtle tension in Bruce’s spine eased. “Three years,” he argued, as Diana had known he would. “Minimum. Less suspicious, that way.”

“If you say so,” Diana demurred. She allowed Bruce to hold the door for her as they returned to the main room, and abruptly realized that all of their sound shielding had been focused on the base’s exterior walls. The Kryptonian could well have heard everything they’d said. However, she was still making small talk with Hal, which hopefully meant that she’d either deliberately ignored them in order to give them privacy, or she didn’t speak enough English to understand them. Thank Iris for multiple languages.

Bruce nodded to Hal, and they were all awash in green light as the Green Lantern’s ring began translating everything that was said. “I will be accepting your offer.”

That earned them a startled look from Hal and a frown from the messenger. They had probably been expecting Diana to accept. Diana quite frankly didn’t give a damn about their expectations. The Kryptonians could force them to give up a hostage, but they didn’t have to make it _easy._

The messenger rallied, with a smile far less dazzling than the one she’d offered when Hal first brought her in. “Well, it’s good to meet you! I am Kara-El.” Her movements as she stepped forward to shake Bruce’s hand were stilted, but no more than you might expect from someone from a culture that didn’t shake hands.

“Bruce Wayne.” Bruce waited just long enough for Kara-El to start to realize how many of those sounds weren’t in the Kryptonian language before continuing “I’ve been using the name Bas-En when speaking with Kryptonians. I’m aware my name can be difficult for you.

Kara-El grinned at him, relieved. “Thank you for your consideration.” She was _young,_ Diana realized. If Kryptonians aged at the same rate as humans, she was likely half Bruce’s age or less. That… might be an issue.

“Am I to assume you’re my betrothed, then?” Bruce asked. He’d likely picked up on the same cues Diana had.

Kara-El’s hands flew to her mouth. She was actually _blushing._ “Of course not!” she gasped. “Sending the intended to deliver an offer of marriage would be _incredibly_ improper.”

“Then who, exactly, will I be marrying?” Diana sent a quick prayer to Hera that it wouldn’t be Zod. She’d seen the High General across the battlefield, and she knew the look of a man who loved to inflict pain.

“My cousin, Kal-El,” Kara-El said. Diana felt relief rush like ice down her spine. “General Zod has appointed him governor of Earth, so having a human spouse will be useful to him.”

Diana mentally ran through her list of high-ranking Kryptonians and drew a blank. It seemed Zod wasn’t taking the opportunity to elevate the status of one of his commanders. Given how fierce the fighting had been, the most likely other option was that Zod had placed an enemy here in the hopes that Bruce would kill his fiancé. She mentally wrote Zod a good-bye and good luck letter. Once Bruce gave his word, he stuck to it.

“I see.” Bruce’s back was to Diana, but she could _hear_ his eyes narrow. “I am… unfamiliar with Kryptonian courting customs.”

“Oh!” Kara-El brightened. “Well, usually partners don’t meet before the wedding, but they send letters and gifts through a go-between. I’ll be your go-between, for Kal.”

“Did Kal-El ask you to do this?” Diana couldn’t help but ask.

“I volunteered!”

Diana barely managed to throttle down _of course you did._

“I suppose I’ll have to show you where I live then,” Bruce said. He sounded like he would rather yank his teeth out himself. Diana didn’t blame him. Her own stomach dropped at the idea of a Kryptonian near her mother, and Hippolyta was both an Amazon and an adult in her own right. Dick and Jason were old enough to take care of themselves, but the younger ones were so _small._

And Kara-El’s wince said it might be even worse than that. “About that…” She took a fortifying breath. “High General Zod would like you to reside in the Northern Fortress as his guest until the marriage, to ensure no one tries to harm you.”

 _“What?”_ Hal snapped. I wasn’t told – Bats, you don’t have to do this. If they won’t tell you up front–”

“I’m going.”

 _“Bruce,”_ Diana hissed. “You’re essentially volunteering as a hostage!”

“I am aware.”

Kara-El’s gaze bounced nervously between the three of them. “If – if it’s a problem, I’m sure the High General would be happy to place guards on your home instead–”

 _“Absolutely not.”_ Diana felt the hair on the back of her neck stand straight up at the fury in Bruce’s voice. Of course. He’d anticipated this, because it was his job to anticipate these things. And he would die before letting Kryptonians near his family. “I will be happy to accompany you to the fortress.”

“I – if you’re sure,” Kara-El stuttered. Poor girl. Bruce in full fury had cowed kings; this child had no chance. “And – will General Diana be coming with us?”

“No.” Diana shouldered her shield from where she’d rested it on the table. “I have other concerns to take care of.”

“Oh.” Kara-El frowned. “May I ask–?”

Diana looked her straight in the eye. “I’m going to tell Bruce’s family.”


End file.
